IT is good news that plans to electrify the Valleys rail lines have been included in a draft spending plan released by the train operating companies and Network Rail.

But the decision on whether to press ahead with the investment required is one the UK Government will take at a later date. It is therefore necessary that political and consumer pressure is kept up.

Cardiff is the main economic driver in Wales, and connectivity with the capital is vital if the Valleys are to have a chance of future economic success. Many thousands of people commute from the Valleys into Cardiff for work, and whatever the success of attempts to bring employment to Valleys communities themselves, this link will remain vitally important.

Cheryl Gillan, the Welsh Secretary, is making the right noises about the importance of electrification, and we hope her efforts with Government colleagues are effective. The announcement on St David’s Day that the Great Western main line was to be electrified as far as Cardiff was welcome, given persistent rumours that the project might be curtailed at Bristol. We share Mrs Gillan’s hope that electrification will be extended as far as Swansea.

Britain’s transport infrastructure suffered from chronic under-investment over many years. At one time it was said that the Paris Metro received a greater annual public subsidy than the entire British Rail network. Fifty years ago, the conventional wisdom was that railways were destined for extinction as everyone became a car owner. A huge number of supposedly uneconomic lines were shut down while public investment went into building ever more roads.

That, of course, was at a time before knowledge of climate change emerged from the rarefied world of the academic seminar, and before the oil price hike of the 1970s destroyed our naivety about the cost of energy.

If we still had the pre-Beeching railway network, how much easier it would be for us to make significant reductions in car use.

Yet despite the national love affair with the car, there has been in recent years a marked increase in the use of trains, both for passengers and for freight. As traffic congestion has increased, especially during peak periods, the attraction of driving to work has declined, especially for those who live in and near cities.

A reliable and speedy train network can tip the balance for those weighing up whether public transport is for them. Electrifying the Valleys network has an additional advantage because car ownership is lower than in most other parts of Europe as a result of relative poverty.

The success of the Ebbw Vale line has been a godsend to thousands of people whose employment prospects have improved as a result of their ability to travel to Cardiff reasonably quickly. Continued improvement to our rail networks will give hope to many more.